SVS vs Emotiva vs Def Tech

[ÈlTwo]

I'm biased toward my SVS, but when I was doing my research I had narrowed it down to SVS, Hsu and Rythmik.

[frenchyfranky]

I had an SVS sub for 13 years now and I never feel the need to change this beast.

[goodfellas27]

Velodyne MiniVee 8 Inch Subwoofer
Can't go wrong with this bad boy for a small space

[Deleted]

May 17, 2016 13:49:57 GMT -5 srpawski said:

I presently have a single sub, Epik Legend, never venturing into dual subs. I would like to venture that way.

I am thinking sealed as I would like small units. Def Tech Supercubes, be it the 4000 or 6000, definitely fits the bill. They ought to be decent subs, but they seem to get mixed reviews.  I am presently researching SVS SB-1000 and SB-2000.

How do the Def Techs stack up against the SVS and former generation Emotiva subs.  I understand Emotiva is coming out with 2 new units that appear to directly compare in price with both of the SVS units at $499 and $699.  Are these sealed or ported units?  Any comparisions between Def tech, SVS, and what is of the old Emotiva units and expected of the new upcoming Airmotives is well appreciated.  I am not particularly concerned with how my Legend compares as two of any of the new units will outperform the Legend and with the exception of not knowing the dimensions of the Airmotives be a hell of a lot smaller.

..... never venturing into dual subs. I would like to venture that way.  -----  Why?  If you have one main listening position and are now happy with the sound and volume output of the one single Epik Legend sub then another big sub in the same placement spot should be fine.  The reason for two subs is perhaps to get more output and to get more even low bass sound if you have multiple seating locations.  

..... I am thinking sealed as I would like small units.  -----  Why?  Many consider sealed small subs to be somewhat more musical and tight sounding.  However, in general that might be true (although many of the newer/best ported subs are excellent for music also), but the ported subs frequently have louder output and slam for movies and music.  More and more of the best ported subs are quite flat in the critical 15-40/80Hz range.  Deep and loud powerful low bass usually means big subs.  You can save floor space by going tall with dual drivers like the sealed Ryhtmik F25 or L22.

..... My current Legend is roughly 22 deep, 15 wide, and 18 tall. For size reference, the Legend is too large for my taste. If the new Airmotives are the size of the Legend, then I am not interested regardless of how good they might be. I want smaller plus two of them. ....... They are going into a room 15x42 with an adjoining room 20x20.  -----  Wow!  You've got one large room.  Sorry, but your thinking for small subs might be OK for a fairly small room but in your space you need large sub(s) IMO.  The little cube style subs are quite expensive for their performance as they need much larger amps to compensate for the long throw drivers/magnets needed for the small enclosure size.  Note that most of the large subs have much less power needed versus the 1500 and up to 2700 watts for the little super cube subs.  If you insist on the sealed subs then you need to go for the top of the line sealed subs like the  -----  SVS SB13-Ultra or multiples of the SB-2000  -----  HSU Research, ULS-15 MK2 DualDrive (2 subs)  -----  Power Sound Audio, 15S, S1500, S1800 (single or multiple)  -----  Ryhtmik, L22 dual drivers, small footprint,  F25 Direct Servo subwoofer  ----- .   Perhaps even better go for one or two of a larger ported sub like the  -----  Outlaw, Audio Ultra -X12 (best buy)(maybe two)  -----   Ryhtmik, FV15HP (awesome sub)  -----   Power Sound, V1500  -----  SVS, PB12-Plus.

I know there is a lot of info and many choices here.  I highly recommend staying with the online direct dealers like I've listed for the best bang for the buck over the local retail brands like Def Tech, Sunfire, etc. 

I'm somewhat going against your thoughts here but just don't under buy on the sub(s) for that room.



 

[srpawski]

I appreciate your response. I think that I am gonna half to either chose small and sacrifice output or go bigger than what I want to increase output for most peoples' likings. I would be very satisfied with a pair of top of the line sealed subs. I am thinking SuperCube 6000 or SB-2000 is my sweet spot based upon dimensions of the units. I am going to make some cardboard props I think to get a better idea. And given the SB-2000 is not much bigger than the SuperCube 6000, I can get them for half of the price of the SuperCube and I am sure they outproduce them by a lot, too.

[srpawski]

Just ordered a pair of gloss black SVS SB-2000's. Should have them Wednesday.

[srpawski]

[LCSeminole]

May 25, 2016 15:47:44 GMT -5 srpawski said:

View Attachment

Now that's what I call audio porn!!! Welcome to the multi-subwoofer owners club!!!

Just curious how were your SB-2000's delivered? UPS? FedEx?

Oh yeah, I just noticed that SVS is having a Memorial Day sale, and I'm thinking of getting an SB-2000 for the bedroom.

[srpawski]

[srpawski]

Thanks man


UPS. I got them from Crutchfield. Even with SVS giving a discount with duals, I have to pay sales tax to them cause they charge Michigan residents whereas Crutchfield does not. I had some Crutchfield points so I ended up a few dollars less even than from SVS.

That's as far as I got. I haven't hooked them up yet that happens tomorrow. I am SO GLAD I forked the extra for the gloss black. They match my Def Techs perfectly and look incredible.

I have some Mediabridge subwoofer cables and also their 90 degree angle adapters to hook them up with. Those also arrived today.

[vcautokid]

Hmm, some good choices here. I am a bit biased too since I have an SVS also. However, Emotiva will be rocking our world pretty soon with a Subwoofer. How soon you need one is a great question.

There are some great cost effective subwoofer out there. The Def Tech is quite good but has been too long since I have heard one. HSU and SVS and Rythmic and a few others are pretty popular here on the boards.

I like the 2 Subwoofer bundles SVS does. You can save even more with their B stock subwoofer too. Their 5 year bill of rights guarantee is cool too. I would check out the conditions that apply there, but I do believe they take care of return shipping if you are not pleased.

HSU and I go back a long way. 10 years easily. Dr. Poh Hsu has his secret sauce on how to make quite a satisfying subwoofer for not allot of my money. My friend Lance loves his in his theater. Great dynamics, good extension and solid build too. It is good times what you can get for the money. Can you build your own? Sure and you make quite a good one. But all the engineering, tuning etc. is done for you on a manufacturer though. I miss building things. So depending where you are you may not save allot building one as much as building what you want your way.

[bootman]

Why did you place the subs like that?
If purely for aesthetics that rarely produces the best sound.
(but does make for a good product photo)

[ÈlTwo]

They look so small

[Cogito]

May 25, 2016 21:58:04 GMT -5 srpawski said:

View Attachment

IMHO You can't go wrong with SVS subs. Great customer service, competitive pricing, competent engineering and generous warranties. Mine CONTINUES to surprise me with it's extension and musicality.

[srpawski]

Ok, so I got them hooked up. Wow, they sound great. They are nice and tight and clean.

As far as placement, I'm not sure why where I have them is not a good location. They sound excellent there. My last sub sounded good there as well. Plus, most literature I read about placement, including SVSs own literature, state to place them at the front sound stage for best sound. Actually, the recommended placement is either one in each opposing corner along the front or 1/3 of the way down the front of the wall "flanking" the front mains and center. Other than if I were to move them to the outside of the right and left of the front right and left mains, I basically have them where they belong. They don't seem to be cancelling each other out or anything like that or that they or the fronts are robbing each other of the bass wave null effect.

Ok, so I have another question. I have not yet had a subwoofer with an LFE only crossover setting. Quoting from the SVS manual:

Low Pass Filter
This control affects the upper frequency limit of the subwoofer. The control
range is 50-160 Hz, along with a disable (LFE) setting. The slope of the low
pass filter is 12 dB/octave. For connection to an AN receiver, the low pass
should be set to LFE (i.e., disabled). For 2-channel applications, it should be
adjusted to blend with the natural roll-off frequency of your loudspeakers. The
manufacturer's rated bass extension for your loudspeakers is a good starting
point, but final blending is best done by ear.

That said, what do you guys have your crossover points on your subs set at? It seems 80 Hz is the popular setting, if set to a number. I have my fronts set as full range large speakers in the Marantz. I haven't played with the setting. So far I have given them 20 minutes of play time and man does it sound good how it is. What would, in theory, happen if set to a numbered crossover Hz setting? Just more continuous sound?

[ÈlTwo]

I have all my speakers set to small, and when it was all hooked up to my UMC-1 I did use 80 as the cross over.

[repeetavx]

srpawski, congratulations on your new purchase.

If they sound great where they are, leave them there. Could they sound better somewhere else? Could they sound better with different settings?

Maybe.

Both placement and settings are room dependent. If you like the way it sounds, leave them alone. Enjoy them for a while. Get to know how your music sounds the way it is.

Soon enough the curse of audiophile-ism will bite you, and you'll feel compelled to change something. That's when you start to worry about the issues you have brought up. Not before.

[vneal]

I would buy JL Audio first. But given your choice of 3 mine would be the SVS hands down

[Bonzo]

May 26, 2016 19:25:27 GMT -5 srpawski said:

Ok, so I got them hooked up. Wow, they sound great. They are nice and tight and clean.

As far as placement, I'm not sure why where I have them is not a good location. They sound excellent there. My last sub sounded good there as well. Plus, most literature I read about placement, including SVSs own literature, state to place them at the front sound stage for best sound. Actually, the recommended placement is either one in each opposing corner along the front or 1/3 of the way down the front of the wall "flanking" the front mains and center. Other than if I were to move them to the outside of the right and left of the front right and left mains, I basically have them where they belong. They don't seem to be cancelling each other out or anything like that or that they or the fronts are robbing each other of the bass wave null effect.

Ok, so I have another question. I have not yet had a subwoofer with an LFE only crossover setting. Quoting from the SVS manual:

Low Pass Filter
This control affects the upper frequency limit of the subwoofer. The control
range is 50-160 Hz, along with a disable (LFE) setting. The slope of the low
pass filter is 12 dB/octave. For connection to an AN receiver, the low pass
should be set to LFE (i.e., disabled). For 2-channel applications, it should be
adjusted to blend with the natural roll-off frequency of your loudspeakers. The
manufacturer's rated bass extension for your loudspeakers is a good starting
point, but final blending is best done by ear.

That said, what do you guys have your crossover points on your subs set at? It seems 80 Hz is the popular setting, if set to a number. I have my fronts set as full range large speakers in the Marantz. I haven't played with the setting. So far I have given them 20 minutes of play time and man does it sound good how it is. What would, in theory, happen if set to a numbered crossover Hz setting? Just more continuous sound?

Good question. A little bit of discussion here.

emotivalounge.proboards.com/thread/47029/xmc1-bass-distribution-range-speakers

The thing is, speakers like ours with the built in subs provide for options most others don't have (or don't really understand either). But with all those options, it creates headaches because it's hard to figure out which way works best. That's why I was hoping the other thread might take off with input from more expert type people. Problem is Def Tech speakers don't get much love here on this forum.

I do not have separate subs as of now, but I've often thought that I would hook it up so only my speakers run during music (no outboard subs) full range (large), and have the subs work only when watching movies / TV where an actual LFE signal is present. I dunno if that's best either, but it's my thought anyway (you certainly don't have to worry about bass blending properly in the music that way for sure). As to what to set them as (small or large) when using an outboard sub, that's a big part of the debate. By setting them to small you are in essence removing a lot of what you paid for in your main speakers (the built in bass will no longer be playing). By setting them to large, now you run the risk of what people call double bass. Although I'm not sure what all the technical issues with that are myself, or for our particular speakers, if it even matters. I mean my center channel is meant to be set as large, period. This helps with things like men's voices to have weight, as they should. I'm not sure I even like the idea of setting it to small and having a sub pick up the men's voice weight.

I have to say when I first saw the picture of your set up, and I had 2 immediate thoughts: first - speakers are too close together (not by much, but they look like about 6 feet when I think they should be more like 8 feet), although this could just be deception in the picture. But perhaps you have them this close due to how close you have to sit? Second - too much toe in. It looks like you have them pointed directly at the listening position. I know some people like theirs this way, but did you experiment with different degrees of toe? I have found that with mine, minor toe in is good, but too much is not.

While you are taking pictures, I'd like to see more of your room there. It looks very nice, and appears you have some nice decorations.

[mountain]

I have my powered 3 mains set to large , no additional subs, quite happy with the result.  I mainly care about music, if that matters.